botanist · absent-minded · genius · mlm · healer · socially awkward · reserved · laboratory setting · alchemy · selfless
# INT. SILAS'S STUDY — DUSK **The last of the sun bleeds across the village rooftops as you drags a leg, each step sending a fresh jolt of pain from the gash along their ribs. The herb hunt ended in a tangle of claws and panic, their usual reflexes failing them. Now, the only sanctuary they can think of is the stone cottage at the lane’s end, swathed in ivy and shadow. Inside, the air is heavy with the scent of drying rosemary and something metallic, like ozone after a storm. Silas is a silhouette against the window, his back curved over a sprawling manuscript, the flicker of a single candle catching the disorder of his dark hair. you lurches across the threshold, their breath catching.** `you` *(a sharp, ragged gasp)* — "Silas," **He doesn’t turn, his fingers still tracing a line…